Rothko art attack an improvement, self-proclaimed vandal says

David K. Ng

The person claiming to have scrawled on a Mark Rothko mural painting over the weekend at London's Tate Gallery remains at large, but the individual has spoken to various news outlets, including the BBC News and ABC News, saying that he is not a vandal and that his actions have actually improved the value of the artwork.

On Sunday, a painting in Rothko's Seagram series was defaced with writing on its lower right corner. According to photographs published online, the scrawling featured the name "Vladimir Umanets" and a reference to "yellowism."

It remains unclear what "yellowism" is, but some reports said that the term refers to a small art movement created by the perpetrator.

The vandal told the BBC News that he is responsible for defacing the artwork, but denied that what he did is criminal. He told ABC News in a separate interview that he thought the act of defacement would increase the value of the piece.

"I know what the legal consequences are, but I do not think I committed a crime," he told ABC News.

Rothko's Seagram paintings were the subject of the John Logan play "Red," which ran on Broadway and this summer at the Mark Taper Forum, with Alfred Molina playing Rothko in both productions.